Sending money from the United Kingdom to Kenya: the payments stack
Sending GBP 120 from the United Kingdom to Kenya cost 3.43% of the amount on average in Q3 2025, across 27 services in the World Bank's Remittance Prices Worldwide survey. Payouts in Kenya typically run over PesaLink, KEPSS (RTGS); between now and the end of 2027 there are 11 weekdays when banks in the United Kingdom are closed but Kenya keeps paying out, so the payout balance has to be funded before them.
| Average cost to send | 3.43% of GBP 120 (Q3 2025, World Bank RPW) source |
| Money transfer operators | 3.43% across 27 services |
| Collect in United Kingdom | Faster Payments, CHAPS, Bacs (Direct Credit and Direct Debit) |
| Pay out in Kenya | PesaLink, KEPSS (RTGS), M-PESA B2C (Daraja API) |
| Corridor playbook | GBP to KES: funding and prefunding |
What it costs to send GBP 120
The World Bank surveyed 27 services sending from the United Kingdom to Kenya from 16 August 2025 to 29 August 2025. The average total cost, fees plus the FX margin, was 3.43% of the amount sent; money transfer operators averaged 3.43%. source
Bank and operator averages are worked out from the survey's provider types.
The send side: the United Kingdom
- Money remittance and the execution of credit transfers and direct debits are payment services under the Payment Services Regulations 2017; a firm providing them must be an authorised payment institution or a small payment institution unless it is already another type of payment service provider or is exempt. Issuing e-money requires authorisation or registration under the Electronic Money Regulations 2011. source
- Initial capital for an authorised payment institution is 20,000 euros for money remittance only, 50,000 euros for payment initiation and 125,000 euros for the services in paragraphs 1(a) to (e) of Schedule 1, such as executing payment transactions (PSRs 2017, Schedule 3). source
- An authorised e-money institution needs initial capital of at least 350,000 euros; a small e-money institution with average outstanding e-money of 500,000 euros or more holds at least 2% of that amount (EMRs 2011, Schedule 2). source
Licences, sponsor banks, collections, ramps and KYC providers: sending from the United Kingdom.
The payout side: Kenya
| Payout partner | What it does in Kenya | Source |
|---|---|---|
| M-PESA Global (Safaricom) | M-PESA Global, Safaricom's international money transfer service, lets M-PESA customers receive money from abroad through partners including Western Union, MoneyGram, Ria, WorldRemit, Wave and Remitly. | source |
| TerraPay · our guide | Its network page lists Kenya among its African receive markets. | source |
| dLocal · our guide | Payouts V3 sends KES to bank accounts and to M-PESA, Airtel and Equitel wallets, funded in KES or USD, with remitter details required for P2P remittances. | source |
| Flutterwave · our guide | Sends KES to Safaricom M-Pesa, Airtel and T-Kash mobile money wallets from a Flutterwave balance, including cross-currency transfers debited from another currency wallet. | source |
| Fincra | Payout API sends KES to mobile money wallets and bank accounts, as local or cross-currency payouts. | source |
| Thunes · our guide | Pays KES to mobile wallets and to bank accounts over PesaLink, in real time on all days including public holidays. | source |
| Onafriq | Its integration with the Yuno platform is live in Kenya, covering mobile money disbursements and collections and FX treasury services. | source |
Licensing, local banks, stablecoin ramps, FX and KYC in Kenya: launching payments in Kenya.
Payout rails in Kenya
| Rail | Operator | What matters for payouts | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| PesaLink | Integrated Payment Services Limited (IPSL), a Kenya Bankers Association subsidiary | Real-time account-to-account payments 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, including weekends and public holidays. | source |
| KEPSS (RTGS) | Central Bank of Kenya | 07:00 to 19:00 on business days since 1 July 2025 (previously 08:30 to 16:30), closed at weekends and on public holidays. | source |
| M-PESA B2C (Daraja API) | Safaricom | Business-to-customer disbursements from a B2C shortcode, from KSh 10 up to KSh 250,000 per transaction, with recipients capped at KSh 500,000 a day and a KSh 500,000 balance. | source |
Holiday gaps to plan for, to December 2027
Weekdays when one side of the corridor is closed. On the 11 dates when the United Kingdom is closed and Kenya is open, the payout balance has to already hold enough to cover them. On the 7 dates when Kenya is closed, instant rails may still pay out.
| Date | United Kingdom | Kenya | What it means |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mon 30 Nov 2026 | St Andrew's Day (Scotland only) | Open | Prefund Kenya the day before: no funding from the United Kingdom, payouts continue |
| Fri 25 Dec 2026 | Christmas Day | Christmas Day | Both closed |
| Mon 28 Dec 2026 | Boxing Day (substitute day) | Open | Prefund Kenya the day before: no funding from the United Kingdom, payouts continue |
| Fri 1 Jan 2027 | New Year's Day | New Year's Day | Both closed |
| Mon 4 Jan 2027 | 2nd January (substitute day, Scotland only) | Open | Prefund Kenya the day before: no funding from the United Kingdom, payouts continue |
| Tue 9 Mar 2027 | Open | Idd-ul-Fitr | Kenya banks closed: only always-on rails pay out |
| Wed 17 Mar 2027 | St Patrick's Day (Northern Ireland only) | Open | Prefund Kenya the day before: no funding from the United Kingdom, payouts continue |
| Fri 26 Mar 2027 | Good Friday | Good Friday | Both closed |
| Mon 29 Mar 2027 | Easter Monday | Easter Monday | Both closed |
| Mon 3 May 2027 | Early May bank holiday | Open | Prefund Kenya the day before: no funding from the United Kingdom, payouts continue |
| Mon 31 May 2027 | Spring bank holiday | Open | Prefund Kenya the day before: no funding from the United Kingdom, payouts continue |
| Tue 1 Jun 2027 | Open | Madaraka Day | Kenya banks closed: only always-on rails pay out |
| Mon 12 Jul 2027 | Battle of the Boyne (Northern Ireland only) | Open | Prefund Kenya the day before: no funding from the United Kingdom, payouts continue |
| Mon 2 Aug 2027 | Summer bank holiday (Scotland only) | Open | Prefund Kenya the day before: no funding from the United Kingdom, payouts continue |
| Tue 10 Aug 2027 | Open | General Election Day | Kenya banks closed: only always-on rails pay out |
| Mon 30 Aug 2027 | Summer bank holiday | Open | Prefund Kenya the day before: no funding from the United Kingdom, payouts continue |
| Mon 11 Oct 2027 | Open | Mazingira Day (observed) | Kenya banks closed: only always-on rails pay out |
| Wed 20 Oct 2027 | Open | Mashujaa Day | Kenya banks closed: only always-on rails pay out |
| Fri 29 Oct 2027 | Open | Diwali (Hindu faith only) | Kenya banks closed: only always-on rails pay out |
| Tue 30 Nov 2027 | St Andrew's Day (Scotland only) | Open | Prefund Kenya the day before: no funding from the United Kingdom, payouts continue |
| Mon 13 Dec 2027 | Open | Jamhuri Day (observed) | Kenya banks closed: only always-on rails pay out |
| Mon 27 Dec 2027 | Christmas Day (substitute day) | Boxing Day (observed) | Both closed |
| Tue 28 Dec 2027 | Boxing Day (substitute day) | Open | Prefund Kenya the day before: no funding from the United Kingdom, payouts continue |
Full calendars: United Kingdom and Kenya. Size the buffer with the corridor runway calculator.
Funding the corridor
- Faster Payments is available to customers 24/7, but net settlement between participants takes place in the Bank of England RTGS system three times each business day. source
- CHAPS does not run on weekends or England and Wales bank holidays, and the customer payment deadline is 17:40, so any same-day sterling funding of an overseas account must be instructed before then. source
- A licensed remittance provider can net off payments with counterparties at settlement, but all its foreign exchange flows must go through Kenyan commercial banks. source
- Customer funds for transmission go into a 'customers' account' held in the provider's name at a licensed commercial bank or microfinance bank. source
- KEPSS closes at weekends and on public holidays, so bank-funded top-ups wait for the next business day while PesaLink payouts continue. source
Running the corridor
Polynopsis shows every balance on both sides of this corridor in one live position: the collection accounts in United Kingdom, the payout partners and banks in Kenya and any stablecoin in between. It warns before the Kenya balance runs dry, holidays included. See how it works.
Frequently asked questions
How much does it cost to send money from the United Kingdom to Kenya?
The World Bank's survey put the average total cost of sending GBP 120 at 3.43% in Q3 2025, across 27 services. Money transfer operators averaged 3.43%.
Which rails pay out in Kenya?
Local payouts run over PesaLink, KEPSS (RTGS), M-PESA B2C (Daraja API).
When do I need to prefund Kenya payouts ahead of holidays?
Between now and December 2027 there are 11 weekdays when the United Kingdom is closed and Kenya is open, the first on Mon 30 Nov 2026. The payout balance has to cover those days before they start.
Related corridors
Sources
- World Bank, Remittance Prices Worldwide dataset · World Bank
- UK bank holidays (JSON feed) · GOV.UK
- UK bank holidays · GOV.UK
- Public Holidays Act (Cap. 110), revised edition · Kenya Law (National Council for Law Reporting)
- Extension of operating hours for KEPSS (press release) · Central Bank of Kenya
Know where all your money is.
Polynopsis gives cross-border payment teams one live position across every bank, payout partner, exchange and wallet, including money in flight, and warns before a corridor runs dry.